Vivian is a dental nurse at King’s College Hospital, whose passion for community education in the area of dental health has taken her to many countries all over Africa. With many of her family resident in Ghana, regular visits ignited a desire in Vivian to bring her knowledge and experience to communities deprived of oral health education.

Starting with an event in 2017, Vivian soon became involved in the Oral Africa Care initiative, which aims to disseminate information and oral hygiene products to communities where these necessities for a healthy mouth are simply not available. From her initial journeys to Ghana, Vivian has travelled further afield to countries such as Morocco and Gambia, often raising funds to support the initiatives through her own efforts on platforms such as GoFundMe.

Vivian has encountered remote communities where access to dental care is severely lacking, in fact she even encountered some villagers who had not seen a toothbrush before. Where dental hygiene care is available, the quality of the information can sometimes be patchy – for instance there is a persistent suggestion that the harder you scrub, the cleaner your teeth, a misconception that Vivian is working hard to dispel.

Vivian is concentrating on how small changes can make huge impacts, and a focus on brushing techniques and cavity prevention are making significant positive contributions. Her voluntary work has taken her to villages, orphanages, and foster homes across the African continent, and where possible, Vivian has worked hard to supplement her educational work with free access to hygiene products.

Such is Vivian’s commitment to positive oral health, she has even encouraged some family members to assist her in providing dental hygiene products on her next trip to Ghana over Easter.